Barry Glickstein of the Babcock Theatre Preservation Society accepts a donation for the theater from Anderson and Greyson Havens
By Kathryn Ross
WELLSVILLE – It was a good weekend for movie lovers.
While there were lots of things to do this past weekend in the village of Wellsville, two boys spent their time selling lemonade, and the Babcock theatre is all the richer for their effort.
At the regular meeting of the Babcock Theatre Preservation Society Tuesday night the group was surprised when two youngsters walked into their meeting at the library.
The Havens brothers, Anderson, 6, and Greyson, 8, explained that they had spent the weekend at the Sunnydale Yard Sales at their grandmother’s house at 73 Trappingbrook Road. There they set up a lemonade stand and sold drinks to thirsty bargain hunters.
Tuesday night they passed their earnings on to BTPS, donating $70 to the cause.
The catch is the young entrepreneurs gave their lemonade away free, charging only a donation to the Babcock project.
The committee members assured the boys they would get a movie as a reward for their thoughtfulness and generosity. Afterward the committee members pondered if the first and third graders had ever seen a movie at the Babcock. The theater closed during the Covid Epidemic which started in 2020.
BTPS has been working for two years to develop plans to renovate, restore and reopen the iconic theater. It currently rents the marquee (go to the Babcock Theatre Preservation Society Facebook page for rates) and holds fundraisers to apply for grant funding. It also accepts donations of any size. It is currently holding puppet workshops, making puppets to enhance the annual Christmas Parade. For up-to-date information, videos or to contact the group, go to the webpage at www.babcocktheater.org.
